The End is Near!

Our world, including our planet and its inhabitants, is stressed out.

Fire.

Earthquakes.

Climate change.

War.

Disease.

Shootings.

And these are just the headlines. We are also experiencing moral decay, the disintegration of families, communities and civility.

Has this old world taken all it can take, and is it time for the Lord’s return?

Perhaps. At the very least, the events we are witnessing should cause us to pause and consider the possibility.

However, there are other possibilities. While the Lord will surely return, we might be experiencing an unfortunate, temporary season in which our fallen world is being pushed to the limit. But it may not be “the” end.  My prayer is that things will improve for our children, and their children, and that God will continue to demonstrate patience as He gives more people time to draw near to Him.

It is also possible our specific culture is caught in a dangerous death spiral that could ultimately lead to our national demise. This doesn’t mean the end of the world is immanent, but rather that we have squandered the blessings of God, and our society may pass into the history books. I will go one step further and say, if the Lord tarries, it is probable this will be our fate.

I am not a doomsday guy, and I am always more inclined to believe things can get better. God has given us the intelligence and the moral instruction we need to improve our circumstances if we so choose.

But, regardless of how long our world is going to last, the end is still near. Life is short.

This Saturday I am performing a memorial celebration for a 49-year-old woman. Another member of our church family will be attending her father’s funeral who died tragically and much too soon, of Lou Gehrig’s Disease. I am 60 years old, and even if my health remains sound, genetics tells me I have between 25-30 years left on earth.

Does this discourage me?

Not really. I have an eternal home, and when I pass from this life to the next I will be with the Lord and many others I have met along the way.

But it does get my attention. Every day of my life I let go of something I know I can’t keep and reach for something I know I can.

What can I keep? My relationship with the Lord, and other believers I have met on earth. I have a will for the other stuff.

Can this world take any more? Probably.

I’ll admit things look bad. But things have looked bad before and God has granted us the grace of a new day.

I pray He will do this again. But either way, a new day is coming. And while I care deeply about the world I am going to leave behind for my children and grandchildren, I am personally not too concerned for myself.

The end for those who know the Lord is really just the beginning.

They say “all good things must come to an end.”

But some good things never come to an end. They begin anew every day.

As does our walk with the Lord.

Could the end still be near?

Yes!  In fact, it is very near.

“The End.”